Head & Brushstroke Study (2024)

This study was created as a continuation of my exploration into painterly mark-making and the tension between refinement and spontaneity. Unlike the 2023 No Blending study, which focused on structural precision, this piece leans toward movement — a portrait emerging through texture rather than line.

The subject’s downward gaze and calm expression evoke quiet introspection, yet the brushwork resists stillness. Strokes dissolve into abstraction, suggesting the fragility of both form and emotion. I was interested in how the incomplete surface could still feel whole — how the act of painting itself becomes part of the portrait’s psychology.

Head & Brushstroke Study (2024) reflects my ongoing attempt to reconcile technical discipline with emotional immediacy. Each visible mark carries its own rhythm, forming a dialogue between observation and instinct. The portrait isn’t so much a likeness as a mood: suspended between presence and disappearance.

Painted digitally in layered oil simulation, this study employs expressive brush textures and tonal glazing to build depth without rigidity. A soft, muted palette of sage, ivory, and sienna balances cool and warm undertones, allowing light to drift naturally across the form. The edges were intentionally left open, merging figure and background to create a painterly atmosphere reminiscent of late Romantic portraiture.